He realized when he got home that he had not taken Wang Fang's phone number, and neither had she.
He started wondering why she had acted the way she did earlier when he dropped her off at her house. He got up from the couch where he had settled and went to the restroom to have a cool bath.
Just as he was taking his shower, he heard his phone ring. Who could that night's caller be? His friends and family knew that he hated to take nighttime calls. He was unable to figure out who that person was.
He prefers to be the one doing the night calls at his convenience and not the other way around.
Immediately after getting done bathing, he grabbed his phone to see who had been calling him. He discovered he already had six missed calls. He was then tied between returning the person's call immediately or, rather, doing that the next morning.
Come to think of it, it was already 11 p.m., and the caller had already given him six missed calls with no caller identification.
The fact that the person called it shows it was for something very important that demanded urgency.
"I think it would be better if I called this number," Jinyong said aloud to himself with a tone that depicted anger.
Then he dialed the number. As soon as the call went through
"Hello!" the person on the other side said as soon as the call went through.
He Jinyong had waited to hear the person speak to know if it was a familiar voice or not.
Although it was a female voice, he was familiar with that voice.
"Hello. I missed your calls, so I thought it wise to return them. May I know who I am speaking with?" Jinyong finally talked. Demanding to know who he was talking with.
"Yeah. This is Li Jing, sir!" The person at the receiver's end introduced herself.
Li Jing works as a maid at the 'He's Fanily House." She had been working there for over 6 months now, and not for once had she called the young master 'He Jinyong.
The young boss, on his own, had not asked for the new maid's number since she started working with his family.
He was quite friendly with the old maid.
*********
Li Xiu Ying was He's Fanily old maid and aunt to Li Jing.
She was married, though, and still answered under the Li family name.
Li Xiu Ying started working for the family before Jinyong was born. She watched Jinyong grow up and was very fond of him.
Just when she told old Mama and Papa He that she was leaving the family, they pleaded with her to stay with them some more and offered to increase her pay to any amount she would want to be paid.
But that wasn't what she wanted; she calmly rejected the family's offer and explained to them why she needed to leave.
"Xiu Ying, is there anything we have done wrong that you are keeping?" Old Mrs. He had questioned her just when she told them she was leaving the family.
"Not really, Mrs. He. This family has treated me as their own, but I need to go back to my family. I have to be with my husband."
"I see. What if we offer you and your husband accommodation here in one of the He's family houses?" Mrs.Al suggested it to Xi Ying, expecting to get a 'yes' for an answer. But the reverse was the case, as Li Xiu Ying's mind was already made up.
The He family had treated Li Xiu Ying as one of them. The truth is that she had been married a few months ago and needed to join her husband in the city where he is based.
She turned down the offers of their father's family but did so peacefully and respectfully without having to get into an altercation with them.
"I don't think that would be necessary, Mrs. Al; my husband won't welcome that idea, but thanks for such a mouth-watering offer," she said, beaming with a smile on her face.
"But you have nothing to worry about. I will bring my niece here to work for this noble family. I'm sure she will like it here." Li Xiu Ying added
She was able to convince Old Mrs. He about her leaving. Telling Mrs. He about bringing her niece to work for the He family was a huge relief for her.
Li Xiu Ying had already given her family a good reputation at the He family house through her behavior and how she carried herself.
The He family had nothing to worry about since the replacement of their maid was coming from the maid's family.
That was how Li Jing started working for the He family.
*******
"Li Jing? Is there a problem?" Jinyong asked with concern.
"There is a little problem, sir."
"What is the problem? Speak up, please!" Jinyong asked curiously.
"Your mother isn't feeling too well, and she had forbidden me from calling the doctor, so I thought calling you would be a better option."
"For my mother to stop you from calling the family doctor, it's obvious the illness isn't that critical. Nevertheless, I will be at He's Mansion first thing tomorrow morning," Jinyong said.
"I think she's just feeling under the weather. Just come and see things for yourself". Jing suggested.
"Alright. Thank you. Goodnight," Jinyong bided.
Goodnight, sir," Ying responded as the call went off.
**********
The next morning, Jinyong hurried into his call and drove off straight to He's Mansion to see his mother. Before doing that, he made sure he had already called the family doctor.
"Mother, how are you doing this morning?" Jinyong asked as soon as he got to his mother's room, while he placed his palm on her forehead.
"I'm doing great, son." Why have you come to see me this early?" Mrs. He asked. With an expression on her face indicating that she's surprised to see her son come around so early.
She least expected her son to be with her that early. Even though she was happy to see him, she was a bit skeptical too.
Her son wouldn't wake up very early to visit her, not with his busy schedule.
She suspected someone must have called her son to snitch on her about her health.
"Mother, I know you are not in your best state of health. So stop pretending to be fine when it is very obvious that you are not," Jinyong said, trying to make his mother admit the truth that she isn't feeling fine.
"Son, I am good. By the way, your coming to the house early is based on my health." Mrs. She asked, twirling her face away from her son.
"What do you expect? That I stay conveniently at home or in the office after I've been informed that my mother is not feeling well? You know...."
He was still talking when a lady in her late 20s walked into the mother's room. Interrupting mother and son's conversation.
That was the family doctor, specifically assigned to the mother.
She had come to carry out some tests on Mrs. He wanted to ascertain what was wrong with her and know if she would be placed on medication.
"Good morning, Mrs.He. Good morning, Master He." The doctor greeted both mother and son, smiling at them.
Immediately after Mrs. He saw the doctor, and she quickly averted her gaze to the other side of the bed. She hates seeing the doctor; she believes that they always see things that are not there when it comes to her case.
She did not answer the doctor's greetings. Although the doctor was used to that kind of attitude from her,
She understood quite well why she does this almost every time she comes to the mansion to check on her.
"Good morning, Doc. Chen. Please do well to carry out your assignment." Jinyong responded to Doctor Chen's greeting and asked her to describe what brought her to the family house.
Doctor Chen then asked Mrs. Al to lie flat on her stomach to enable her to carry out her professional duties effectively.
Mrs. Al reluctantly carried out the doctor's instructions only because her son was there. She hated to be checked and carried tests on, but she didn't want to get her son upset.
Doctor Chen did some checkups on Mrs.Al and collected her blood sample for some tests.
She took the blood sample to the He's Family Laboratory Home, where all tests about the family are being conducted.
The lab is situated inside the He's mansion, and the doctor need not stress herself taking the blood sample to the hospital lab as all the equipment needed can be found in the family lab.
After an hour, she came back with the result of the tests, which indicated that Mrs. He was medically fine to a large extent.
The only challenge she was facing was depression.
Her blood pressure was okay.
Doctor Chen asked Jinyong to always keep in touch with his mother and try as much as possible to be in her presence because she seriously needs the presence of her loved ones.
She also wrote on a piece of paper that some drugs were to be bought and given to her.
"You have to get those drugs for her and make sure she takes them. Her health is in good shape, but she still needs those drugs that would help her heal from the depression.
Mind you, your presence is needed as well; it's a bigger contributing factor to her health." The doctor instructed He Jinyong
"Alright, Doc. Thanks a lot for your concern."
*********
"Jin, who called the doctor to come check me up?" Mrs. Al asked after the doctor had left the house.
"Mother, I did. You are just acting too strange these days. Why do you despise being checked medically?" Jinyong asked his mother while he laughed so hard.
"You keep asking me silly questions." Don't you know that doctors are not real?
"They don't, mother. You are the one seeing things that way.
Doctor Chen just did some checkups and tests, and the results came out well. Did she say anything bad?"
"By the way, who called and told you I was not feeling fine?" He asked to know who must have called her son.
"I won't say who did it, Mom. Just forget about that.
Have you had anything to eat this morning yet?
"Are you asking me that? Don't you know when I take my breakfast? You arrived here way too early, and you expect me to have eaten by then?."
"Alright, mom. What are we having for breakfast? Jinyong asked
"That question should be directed at Jing, not me. She's got the key to the food menu."
"Okay, mum. Let me speak with her."
Jinyong left for the living room, where he thought he could find Jing. When she got there, she wasn't in the living room.
He walked straight to the kitchen and found her there, trying to make breakfast for the family.
"Good morning, sir." Jing greeted Jinyong.
"Hope your night was good. A quick one, what are we having for breakfast?" Jinyong asked Jin
"pancaked bread with scrabble eggs and tea to go with."
"Nice. Please get mom's own to her room. She won't be coming down for breakfast," Jinyong instructed.
"Ok, Sir. What about you, sir?"" Jin asked.
"Don't worry about me. I'll take care of myself. Please hurry up. You are driving with me to the pharmacy to get Mother some prescribed drugs by the doctor."
"Alright, Sir. I'll be done before you know it." She responded, beamed with a smile on her face, and winked at her boss.
"Sorry. Just take your time. I'll just order the drugs instead to avoid stressing you."
"That's nothing, sir." I can go with you; at least I'm at your service, sir."
She was still talking when He Jinyong interrupted her.
He hated the attitude she exhibited in front of him.
What exactly was she up to?
"Please speak no further. Get Mother's breakfast to her room."